Leave Your Hat On
by Lucy Hallowell
Summary: Prompted by Carolyn (adrblepancreas) a fic about when Paige McCullers went to buy that belt buckle for the hoedown. You know the drill, the characters aren't mine, they belong to the PLL people.


The sleigh bells attached to the door jingle when a customer walks in. He's so late that Paige has stopped looking up with each ring. There's a deer mounted on the wall above her head and she's trying to ignore it's glass eyes and open mouth as she flips through a rack of leather vests.

"Sorry I'm late," Caleb says a he trots up behind her. "Hanna wouldn't stop trying on clothes." Paige turns around raises one eyebrow at Caleb. "Oh, not like that. That, would have been worth being late for. No, this was just a parade of denim for the barn dance, or whatever it's called."

"Emily won't tell me what she's wearing." Paige pushed the vests around, the hangers squeaking against the rack. "I have a hat my parents bought me when they took a trip to Texas last year. I just think I need something else."

"Why didn't you just go to the Costume Shop in town?" Caleb examines a beaded denim shirt but stops when Paige doesn't answer.

"Really?"

"Oh, right. I forgot about Shana." Caleb stifles a smirk and walks over the the section of the store dedicated to cowboy boots of every color and texture imaginable. He picks up a pair of bright red boots and holds them over his head. "Do you want me to see if they have the 'Ted Mosby' in your size?"

A short man in tight Wranglers and a perfectly pressed plaid shirt tucked with military precision walks between them and glares at Caleb. Caleb shrugs at Paige who covers her mouth with her hand and turns away. A moment later Caleb's eyes grow wide when the man rounds the corner of a display case filled with Bowie knives and reveals a pair of the fire engine red boots.

Caleb rushes over to Paige's side. A man wearing a greying 'Appetite for Destruction' t-shirt and a scraggly beard uses his tongue to dislodge something from his teeth without taking his eyes from the pair. "Just pick something, will you? Before we break some kind of cowboy code or something."

"Can you be a cowboy in Pennsylvania?" Paige wonders as she pulls two belts from the wall.

"Well, you can sure as hell be a redneck," Caleb hisses in her ear.

"What do you think?" Paige holds out a tan belt decorated with metal studs.

"I like it. But where's the buckle?"

"In the display case by the cash register. Come on, help me pick out the perfect one."

The glass is clouded with fingerprints and scratches. The cashier casts a wide shadow over the case. "Can I help you with something?" His voice rumbles like gravel under truck tires.

"Yes. I need a buckle for this belt," Paige says slapping the leather portion on the counter.

"Looking for anything in particular?" He pulls out a tray covered in velvet and belt buckles with a distinctly girly flair. Paige struggles against her instinct to make a face. In the center of the display is one with a horse, coated in a Pepto Bismol pink, and the phrase "Cowgirl Up" in curly letters.

"Those are really nice," she says with her most polite smile, "but I'm looking for something a little less..."

"Girly," Caleb adds for her. The cashier nods and puts the tray back in the case. "Paige, what about that one," Caleb asks pointing. The cashier pulls out a second tray and places it in front of Paige. "It's perfect for you," Caleb says handing Paige a buckle with the Batman logo on it.

Paige turns it over in her hands before setting it down. "How about that one?" The cashier points to a tray and looks at Paige for confirmation. "Yeah, that one." Paige's face splits into a grin. The cashier straightens up and drops the tray in front of Paige. He catches the eye of the Guns 'N Roses fan who slides up next to Caleb.

"What do you think?" Paige asks after selecting a buckle with a naked woman on it.

"The mud flap lady is a bold choice McCullers. Think you can pull it off?"

Paige smirks. "I'll take it," she says to the cashier. He attaches the buckle to the belt and wraps it in tissue before rolling it into a coil. Paige turns to Caleb. "I know I can. The only question will be if Em can wait until the end of the dance to pull it off." Paige winks at Caleb and pays a very bewildered cashier before walking out with her belt in a paper bag.

The doorbell sounds too loud when Paige pushes the button. She twirls her hat in her hands and has to bend down to pick it up when Mrs. Fields opens the door. "You all right Paige?"

"Oh, yeah. I just dropped my..." she holds out her hat to show Emily's mom as a blush creeps up her cheeks.

"Emily is almost ready, why don't you come in." Mrs. Fields steps aside to let Paige into the house. "Why don't you come into the kitchen, the living room is still a construction mess." Paige looks at the doorway draped with plastic as she walks down the hall.

Paige tries to settle her nerves by sitting in a chair but hops up as soon as Mrs. Fields asks her if she'd like a drink. "Oh no, that's okay. I'm fine." Paige drops her hat again.

"Emily will be right down. Let me go check on her." Mrs. Fields flashes a reassuring smile and leaves the room. Paige hears her call for Emily and sinks back into a chair. The belt buckle presses her stomach underneath her vest and she tries to arrange herself in the chair to stop the discomfort.

"Paige," Emily's voice calls from the hallway and Paige grins before Emily arrives in the kitchen. When Paige sees Emily she stands up, clutching her hat in front of her stomach.

"Hi," is all Paige can manage as she takes in Emily's outfit of boots, impossibly tiny shorts, plaid shirt with the sleeves cut off, and a bandana around her neck.

"You look," Emily starts and then blushes when her mom walks into the kitchen.

"You do too," Paige says unable to blink or swallow.

"Ready?" Emily says taking Paige by the arm. "Bye Mom, see you later." Emily tugs Paige down the hall and out onto the porch.

Paige stops to put her hat back on and then offers Emily her arm. "Holy crap, that is amazing!" Emily says, her eyes on Paige's exposed midriff.

Paige beams, then blushes. "You're talking about the belt, right?"

"And what's under it." Emily says hooking a finger in one of Paige's belt loops and pulling her closer. With one finger under the brim, Paige knocks her hat up and onto the back of her head before leaning in. Emily smiles inches away from Paige's mouth and gives Paige's belt another tug. Paige's hands finds Emily's waist and the smooth, cool fabric of her shirt before she closes the gap between their lips. Paige's giant belt buckle presses into Emily's stomach and sends Emily's imagination in a direction entirely inappropriate for the Fields' front porch.

"Hold that thought, cowboy," Emily breathes into Paige's ear. Paige nods, her forehead resting against Emily's. Emily wraps her hand around the belt buckle and gives it a tug. "And whatever you do, don't lose the hat."


End file.
